SYNOPSIS
Shasta's life takes a supernatural turn when she meets a stranger in her tiny village. Her newly adopted stray cat is hostile toward the enigmatic Erasmus, betraying the paranormal essence of her feline companion. Naive, unprepared for love or a soulmate from the past and future, Shasta is plunged into a reality where realms warp and meld, and where she is their conquest. Time is not linear and love is never simple. Time plays foul with every expectation and all is not as it seems.
Shasta's life takes a supernatural turn when she meets a stranger in her tiny village. Her newly adopted stray cat is hostile toward the enigmatic Erasmus, betraying the paranormal essence of her feline companion. Naive, unprepared for love or a soulmate from the past and future, Shasta is plunged into a reality where realms warp and meld, and where she is their conquest. Time is not linear and love is never simple. Time plays foul with every expectation and all is not as it seems.
A wise woman may
have the answers in each life the lovers walk through. She knows Shasta in
every era and meets Erasmus in different guises. When Erasmus is put under a
spell to become a book, she is his keeper. And May, in every life, takes care
of a little black cat called Merlin. Queen Amelia is aware of the
complications time creates. She is powerful in magic and seeks to aid eternal
love to a happy ending, but it is a truth that all crossing time must always
expect the unexpected.
True love can
cross oceans, can make the fixed malleable, and can warp boundaries. When the
soul and fate collide, Shasta falls in love with her Soulfate....
5* REVIEWS Amazon
Hypnotic
~o0o~
5* REVIEWS Amazon
Hypnotic
Willow
seems to be a normal little girl by all accounts. That is, until her parents
take her to visit her Aunt May in the village of Shasta. It quickly becomes
apparent that Willow is actually the second coming of Shasta herself, the
village's namesake. She is returning to be reunited with her long lost love,
Merlin, who has been placed under a spell. In order to try to obtain eternal
happiness, the lovers travel back in time to Shasta's original arrival at the
village, and try to rewrite history. But it seems the nefarious Erasmus has
other plans for the two.
Once
again, Geering writes a book that feels like mythology of long ago. There is a
sort of timeless beauty to the book, with no real references to modernity or
pop culture, that will make it endearing for years to come. The writing in the
book is soft and dreamy, floating from past to present. At times, the two
stories, both past and present, seem so similar, the reader may get the feeling
of deja vu. This helps lift the filmy veil between the two time periods.
I
really enjoyed the character of Shasta, and watching Willow become Shasta. The
inclusion of faeries and various magical elements make this seem like a
fairytale for adults. The story has a hypnotic quality that urges the reader to
continue at any cost (including sleep). The reader certainly feels transported
to another time and place.
In
order to fully appreciate the book, readers must have the ability to suspend
disbelief. This is a romantic fantasy, dealing with elements of time travel,
reincarnation, and magic. Readers need to be aware of this and fully
comfortable with these subjects in order to fully appreciate the book.
Rarely
do I comment on book covers, because they often change, but the cover for this
book is simply gorgeous. That alone is enough to hook the reader, the gorgeous
story is an added bonus
~o0o~
Take a journey into enchantment!
Are you ready for an enchanted adventure back through time? I
was anticipating this wonderful book months before its release, because I knew
in advance just how wonderfully well Author Teresa Geering writes, having had
the delight of reading her debut novel "Shasta and Erasmus'
This novel is part of a trilogy...and actually is a prequel to
"Shasta and Erasmus". However you read them each story will transport
you to a land of strangeness and magic, the characterizations so beautifully
crafted by this author that you can see them dancing in your mind...You can
hear the cat speak...You are laughter bound on meeting the darling Aunt May.
Erasmus and Shasta are bound through time. This is a love story
that has no boundaries of centuries past or future. As adults we may need to
learn to relax and accept all we read, before we can totally absorb all the
book has to offer.
However if you bring to the book the willingness to suspend
disbelief, you will be transported by the Author...it will perhaps remind you
of the magic of childhood as you find yourself hearing the laughter within its
pages.
This book has no age barrier; it is as pleasurable for the
reader regardless of being fifteen or fifty.
The final part of this trilogy is still to come, and this reader
is impatient.
If you want a joyous exploration, a journey through a world less
harsh and cynical, then you can do no better.
Author Teresa Geering's works shall remain high on my list of
must haves.
~o0o~
Erasmus is a powerful man. Born during a storm, as he grows up
he realizes he has extraordinary powers. He determines he can travel through
time, and goes into the future to meet the love of his life, Shasta. Erasmus
and Shasta were born on the same date, at the same time, many years apart. They
fall deeply in love, and marry. But all the while, Hesper, the begger boy
Shasta takes into her home, shows disdain for Erasmus. Who is Hesper, really,
and who is he to challenge Erasmus the Omnipotent?
Reading this book was an unusual experience for me. The book is written
unlike most modern fiction, where the goal is to create a personal bond between
reader and character. Instead, The Eye of Erasmus reads like an ancient myth,
slightly removed from the reader because it is sacred, scriptural almost. I
loved that aspect of the book, it gave me a feeling of enlightenment and awe.
The book uses language that allows the reader to determine the
place and time setting, which I think is fantastic. This allows every reader to
paint their own version of Erasmus and Shasta, which in turn does allow the
reader to have a personal investment in the story. This story has a quiet,
solemn power about it, and I felt myself pushing through drowsiness to read on
late into the evening. There was no way I was going to sleep without knowing
what was to happen.
The book is written in such a way that I think it will appeal to
a large variety of readers. There are some fantasy and supernatural elements to
the story, so those fans will enjoy. There is romance, so those readers will
love it as well. As because of the mythos involved in the story, I believe it
will greatly appeal to classical literature fans, historical fans, mythology
fans, and readers who enjoy classic storytelling elements in writing.
To me, this feels like the kind of story that can be passed on
for many generations. The fact that there are 2 future installments planned for
Erasmus' story leaves me breathless with anticipation.
~o0o~
Sheer Magick!
Let's be honest, who wouldn't fancy a go at time travel, if
offered the chance? Most of the population, right? Well, if you read this first
offering from English wordsmith, Teresa Geering, you will get the chance! The
Eye of Erasmus is one of those books that I really wish I had written.
Reminiscent of the great fantasy tales of yonder (only better than most), it
has already been drawn comparisons with Rowling and Auel. Geering creates a
world which is inhabited by a cast of characters and a mesmeric world which are
all richly described so as to become thoroughly real. The hero, Erasmus, is a
carefully constructed and multi-layered hero, who although could be described
as vain and a little selfish, is impossible not to like. And Shasta - dear,
sweet Shasta! As the narrative pulls you relentlessly in, you find yourself
living each page with the lovers, and relating to them like you would a close
friend or family member. Although not my usual genre, I was quickly hooked and
cannot wait to read the subsequent parts of the trilogy. Part of the reason for
this maybe that although Erasmus cries out fantasy from the cover, to the
names, there is really a darn good, twisting and turning, thriller in there,
all wrapped up in a love story. In fact there is something for everyone. If you
simply like reading good books, then this is one for you. Highly recommended. A
must read.
~o0o~
SYNOPSIS
Carolina moves into her deceased aunt’s seaside cottage, only to find that she shares it with ghosts. Seafaring ghosts that have time on their hands. However, the drop dead gorgeous Cornelius has an attraction for Carolina and asks her to write his biography.
She’d left her previous job in the House of Commons to continue her successful writing career, so she agrees to it. As his story unfolds she realises that they have a romantic past connection.
When disgraced minister the Rt. Honorable Jonathon Taylor turns up looking for sanctuary and an affair with Carolina, the ghosts take their revenge.
~o0o~
This is a great supernatural ghost story. It is a unique tale of love that has no boundaries. Carolina is a relatable character and Cornelius a swoon-worthy leading man. This book has twists I didn’t anticipate and this page turner kept me reading to find out what Carolina’s fate would be. This is an unputdownable story of love, ghosts and pirates.
SYNOPSIS
Maia and her family are accustomed to an opulent lifestyle
through inherited money. The castle they now reside in is no different to other
homes they have around the world. However, on this occasion, her father won it
in a roulette game on the French Riviera. Her parents are passionate about
Greek mythology and this reflects in their daughter’s names.
Maia looks at her sister Alcyone for the millionth time. She
is only a year older, but they are chalk and cheese except for their savings
accounts. They match each other thousand for thousand.
In a £10,000 bet with her sister, Maia agrees to spend All Hallows
Night in the castle crypt. When hunger pains wake her, she discovers a golden
dragon sitting on her stomach offering her a platter of food from the Olympian
Gods. If she satisfies her hunger from the platter, her life would change
dramatically. The price would be immortality and life in a different realm with
the Gods.
Maia unconsciously nibbles on a morsel of food from the
platter whilst making her decision…
SYNOPSIS
8 British Christmas shorts from the Wild Wolf stable to get you ready for the Holidays.
1: A Corpse for Christmas by T.K. Geering ~ While Jack the Ripper is terrorising Mitre Square, bodies are going missing too.
2: Gabriel by Elaina J Davidson ~ Old houses keep old secrets. Ivy discovers that not everyone loves Christmas as much as she does. The dude in the mirror is trying to kill her!
3: The Sins of the Season by Richard Rhys Jones ~ At a time when the gentry rule us peasants, a vicar in a remote parish has his hands full of the deadly sins. Once a druid enters the opulent halls of shame, it all gets bloody interesting.
4: Stocking Killer by Jillian Ward ~ Of all the times of the year to cheat on her man, she chooses now! Well some dude needs a lesson to keep his hands off and Dave is on it like a man possessed; it doesn’t end well for any of them.
5: Christmas Nerd by Joanne Sexton ~ Her family was brutally murdered on Christmas and this holiday is dreaded by her every year since. That's until the cute IT guy makes his move and Kaley gets to have a family Christmas for the first time in decades. The problem with good looking guys is they always have issues.
6: On the Twelfth Day of Christmas by Paul Rudd ~ Thrown back into the 80s we follow Tommy and his friends through the most treacherous board game ever created. It’s awesome, it’s ruthless, and the entire town is now dead! If a stranger tempts you to play a game for the 12 days of Christmas, you might like to reconsider.
7: The Secret of Hungry Summit Mountains by Hannah Ferguson ~ Eloise was just another girl until she was attacked by a vagrant. This one act derails her entire life, leaving her homeless, pregnant, desperate, and depressed. Getting home for Christmas didn’t even cross her mind.
8: The Whispers of Christmas by Poppet ~ Angela is living in a reality that keeps warping. She’s hearing things, has a stalker who’s gas lighting her, and is forced to get high when she goes home for Christmas. Then things get really weird.
It’s just ANOTHER BLOODY CHRISTMAS for these characters, but what the hell, we only live once.
1: A Corpse for Christmas by T.K. Geering ~ While Jack the Ripper is terrorising Mitre Square, bodies are going missing too.
2: Gabriel by Elaina J Davidson ~ Old houses keep old secrets. Ivy discovers that not everyone loves Christmas as much as she does. The dude in the mirror is trying to kill her!
3: The Sins of the Season by Richard Rhys Jones ~ At a time when the gentry rule us peasants, a vicar in a remote parish has his hands full of the deadly sins. Once a druid enters the opulent halls of shame, it all gets bloody interesting.
4: Stocking Killer by Jillian Ward ~ Of all the times of the year to cheat on her man, she chooses now! Well some dude needs a lesson to keep his hands off and Dave is on it like a man possessed; it doesn’t end well for any of them.
5: Christmas Nerd by Joanne Sexton ~ Her family was brutally murdered on Christmas and this holiday is dreaded by her every year since. That's until the cute IT guy makes his move and Kaley gets to have a family Christmas for the first time in decades. The problem with good looking guys is they always have issues.
6: On the Twelfth Day of Christmas by Paul Rudd ~ Thrown back into the 80s we follow Tommy and his friends through the most treacherous board game ever created. It’s awesome, it’s ruthless, and the entire town is now dead! If a stranger tempts you to play a game for the 12 days of Christmas, you might like to reconsider.
7: The Secret of Hungry Summit Mountains by Hannah Ferguson ~ Eloise was just another girl until she was attacked by a vagrant. This one act derails her entire life, leaving her homeless, pregnant, desperate, and depressed. Getting home for Christmas didn’t even cross her mind.
8: The Whispers of Christmas by Poppet ~ Angela is living in a reality that keeps warping. She’s hearing things, has a stalker who’s gas lighting her, and is forced to get high when she goes home for Christmas. Then things get really weird.
It’s just ANOTHER BLOODY CHRISTMAS for these characters, but what the hell, we only live once.
5* REVIEWS Amazon
A plethora of talent. Everything for those looking for something a little darker in their holiday reads! Absolutely fantastic and so brilliantly composed. I thoroughly enjoyed each and every tale within this collection.
My love for Poppet and her style of prose is what enticed me to read this assembled array of stories. And while I am familiar with a few of the authors and haven’t had a chance to read anything of theirs, this anthology gave me the opportunity to experience their style and entice me into their world of writing. I have also added a few newer authors to my list to further explore.
An enchanting collection of twisted Christmas themed shorts to get you in the spirit of the holidays!
My love for Poppet and her style of prose is what enticed me to read this assembled array of stories. And while I am familiar with a few of the authors and haven’t had a chance to read anything of theirs, this anthology gave me the opportunity to experience their style and entice me into their world of writing. I have also added a few newer authors to my list to further explore.
An enchanting collection of twisted Christmas themed shorts to get you in the spirit of the holidays!
~o0o~
5* REVIEW Amazon
This really was an enjoyable book, chock full of captivating stories. Scary? You bet! But there were also moments of gut-busting humour, as well as tenderness that touched the soul, like only the very best literature can do. The following are my thoughts:
1) A Corpse For Christmas (T.K. Geering): I’m just like everyone else in that, in most stories, I feel elated when the villains finally get their cocoa. This isn’t one of them. With Geering’s well written, sympathetic characters, it’s not that I didn’t sympathise with the police, it’s just that I sympathised with the villains just a little more. On a personal note, I’m off to England soon, and was looking forward to their tasty meat pies. But, you know what? If it’s all the same to everyone, I think fish & chips are just as good, really.
2) Gabriel (Elaina J. Davidson): In a sense, where one story leaves off, another begins – in a charming old (and I do mean old) cottage in the country. What an enchanting tale! Prepare for the unexpected because that’s what Davidson delivers. The tension is perfect – not so strong that it didn’t prevent a gasp of surprise, or a full-bellied laugh, throughout the story, and not so soft that I could stop reading until I’d reached the end at 4:00 AM.
3) The Sins of the Season (Richard Rhys Jones): Wow, talk about your seven deadly sins; I really must take up the violin! This was a great story, and Jones told it very well indeed – the narration fit the period to a tee, and the dialogue was excellent. Good characters I could either loathe, or feel sympathy for with equal passion. Not to mention the ending was a real surprise.
4) Stocking Killer (Jillian Ward): By the time I was finished reading this story I had an abiding hatred for Christmas carols; but then, apart from the very young, and those who think life is just one long uninterrupted Disney film, who doesn’t? Life, real life, isn’t like that, and with this story, the proof is in the pudding. Well written, in a way that will have you laughing in one breath, only to be brought up short by the severity of the drama unfolding in the next, as fiction goes, this is about as real as it gets. Great ending, too!
5) Christmas Nerd (Joanne Sexton): I was moved by this story. Sexton took the unimaginable - the coldblooded murder of a family (and on Christmas day at that!) – and made it real. That’s not all: she wrote Kaley, the sole survivor, so sympathetically that every bone in my body yearned for her happiness, and dreaded the appearance of the unknown obstacle, that every drama requires, that would put everything in peril. I wonder if it’s because so much of the story is so believable?
6) On the Twelfth Day of Christmas (Paul Rudd): This story was a pleasure to read. Like Stephen King said (and I paraphrase) – Have you ever had friends as close as when you were fourteen? That’s what Rudd delivers here, and does it well: dorky, basically loveable teenage kids, with a lust for adventure, or just plane lust, both in spades. Oh, and love, too; and when was love any more pure than at that age?
7) The Secret of Hungry Summit Mountains (Hannah Ferguson): This story also begins with a teenager, only there’s nothing dorky about her, and her tale not at all endearing. In sharp contrast, it tells a darker story that is all too believable, because it happens far too often, and continues on for the span of a lifetime or longer. It’s a heart-breaking story that Ferguson tells very well. The ending is nothing less than exquisite.
8) And finally, but by no means least, “The Whispers of Christmas” by Poppet: What a perfect tale to end the book, I loved it! With her unerring skill Poppet takes us from the dark depths of the human experience, to a brighter promise. She guides us through the shadows of cold reality and leads us to where there’s a precious seed of hope cradled in a manger. All that’s required is to choose to believe … and maybe some Christmas pudding from your local chemist. Yes, that will definitely help, too. (wink).
So that's it, what else can I say? Highly, highly recommended.
1) A Corpse For Christmas (T.K. Geering): I’m just like everyone else in that, in most stories, I feel elated when the villains finally get their cocoa. This isn’t one of them. With Geering’s well written, sympathetic characters, it’s not that I didn’t sympathise with the police, it’s just that I sympathised with the villains just a little more. On a personal note, I’m off to England soon, and was looking forward to their tasty meat pies. But, you know what? If it’s all the same to everyone, I think fish & chips are just as good, really.
2) Gabriel (Elaina J. Davidson): In a sense, where one story leaves off, another begins – in a charming old (and I do mean old) cottage in the country. What an enchanting tale! Prepare for the unexpected because that’s what Davidson delivers. The tension is perfect – not so strong that it didn’t prevent a gasp of surprise, or a full-bellied laugh, throughout the story, and not so soft that I could stop reading until I’d reached the end at 4:00 AM.
3) The Sins of the Season (Richard Rhys Jones): Wow, talk about your seven deadly sins; I really must take up the violin! This was a great story, and Jones told it very well indeed – the narration fit the period to a tee, and the dialogue was excellent. Good characters I could either loathe, or feel sympathy for with equal passion. Not to mention the ending was a real surprise.
4) Stocking Killer (Jillian Ward): By the time I was finished reading this story I had an abiding hatred for Christmas carols; but then, apart from the very young, and those who think life is just one long uninterrupted Disney film, who doesn’t? Life, real life, isn’t like that, and with this story, the proof is in the pudding. Well written, in a way that will have you laughing in one breath, only to be brought up short by the severity of the drama unfolding in the next, as fiction goes, this is about as real as it gets. Great ending, too!
5) Christmas Nerd (Joanne Sexton): I was moved by this story. Sexton took the unimaginable - the coldblooded murder of a family (and on Christmas day at that!) – and made it real. That’s not all: she wrote Kaley, the sole survivor, so sympathetically that every bone in my body yearned for her happiness, and dreaded the appearance of the unknown obstacle, that every drama requires, that would put everything in peril. I wonder if it’s because so much of the story is so believable?
6) On the Twelfth Day of Christmas (Paul Rudd): This story was a pleasure to read. Like Stephen King said (and I paraphrase) – Have you ever had friends as close as when you were fourteen? That’s what Rudd delivers here, and does it well: dorky, basically loveable teenage kids, with a lust for adventure, or just plane lust, both in spades. Oh, and love, too; and when was love any more pure than at that age?
7) The Secret of Hungry Summit Mountains (Hannah Ferguson): This story also begins with a teenager, only there’s nothing dorky about her, and her tale not at all endearing. In sharp contrast, it tells a darker story that is all too believable, because it happens far too often, and continues on for the span of a lifetime or longer. It’s a heart-breaking story that Ferguson tells very well. The ending is nothing less than exquisite.
8) And finally, but by no means least, “The Whispers of Christmas” by Poppet: What a perfect tale to end the book, I loved it! With her unerring skill Poppet takes us from the dark depths of the human experience, to a brighter promise. She guides us through the shadows of cold reality and leads us to where there’s a precious seed of hope cradled in a manger. All that’s required is to choose to believe … and maybe some Christmas pudding from your local chemist. Yes, that will definitely help, too. (wink).
So that's it, what else can I say? Highly, highly recommended.
~o0o~
